New CVVM polling finds 40% favor the status quo and 34% would treat prostitution as a licensed trade, as lawmakers mull what—if anything—to change.

A fresh survey from the Czech Academy of Sciences’ Center for Public Opinion Research (CVVM) underscores how finely balanced public opinion remains on the question of whether to fully legalize sex work. Two-fifths of respondents (40%) say the current approach should remain unchanged—prostitution itself is not explicitly banned, but activities around it, such as pimping and operating brothels, are illegal. Roughly one-third (34%) would go the other way and recognize prostitution as a trade, putting sex work under the same kind of licensing and regulatory framework that governs other services.

The findings, collected between May 30 and June 12 from a nationally representative sample of 1,712 residents aged 15 and over, sketch a society that is neither clamoring for a clampdown nor rallying behind full-fledged legalization. About one in ten (11%) would introduce a blanket ban that penalizes both sex workers and clients, while smaller shares would punish only providers (6%) or only clients (2%). Seven percent were undecided, according to CVVM.

These headline numbers have shifted only modestly over the last decade, but CVVM cautions that a recent methodological refresh means today’s results are not directly comparable with earlier waves. Even so, the picture is clear: a large middle prefers not to touch the status quo, and a sizable minority favors a more formal, regulated market.

Gender splits are striking. Men are notably more open to regulation-as-trade, with 42% backing legalization within a licensing framework, compared to just 26% of women. By contrast, women (16%) are more likely than men (about 6%) to favor an outright ban. Education tracks the divide, too: support for prohibition is higher among Czechs with lower formal qualifications, while support for recognizing prostitution as a trade rises among those with a maturita or university degree.

For now, the law keeps prostitution in a legal gray zone. Selling sexual services is not prohibited at the national level, but a host of related activities are criminal offenses. Procuring—often referred to as pimping—remains illegal, as do trafficking and the organization of brothels. Municipalities can also use local ordinances to limit or ban street prostitution in public places. In practice, that patchwork leaves the industry operating in the open but largely outside clear, enforceable standards on health, safety, or taxation.

Advocates of bringing sex work into the light argue that a licensing model could reduce exploitation and improve health outcomes by setting minimum standards, formalizing workplace protections, and strengthening workers’ access to services. They also note that regulation could shrink the informal economy, curb nuisance in residential areas, and bolster the state’s capacity to monitor trafficking risks.

Opponents counter that legal recognition risks normalizing an industry built on coercion and unequal power. They point to European ‘neo-abolitionist’ approaches—in which the purchase of sex is criminalized while selling is not—as a route they say deters demand and undercuts organized crime without penalizing the most vulnerable. At the EU level, recent anti-trafficking reforms and debates in the European Parliament have also kept demand-side measures in the spotlight, adding pressure on member states that currently tolerate or partially regulate aspects of the sex trade.

Czech lawmakers have flirted with major reforms before. A 2005 cabinet-backed bill proposed legalizing and regulating prostitution, requiring licensing and regular medical checks, but it stalled in Parliament. Prague City Hall revived the idea ahead of municipal elections in 2010, pitching a system that would grant sex workers self-employed status and empower localities to set zones and rules. Both efforts ran into political resistance and legal complications, including concerns about international commitments to combat trafficking.

What today’s polling captures is the enduring policy bind. Keeping the gray zone appeases those wary of sweeping changes and avoids thorny legislative fights, but it leaves sex workers and communities navigating inconsistent enforcement and limited oversight. Full legalization could bring clarity but remains a minority preference—strong among men and some urban constituencies, weaker among women and more conservative voters. The Nordic-style option, meanwhile, commands limited public backing in the Czech context and would require substantial policing resources and cultural buy-in to be effective.

The politics are just as complex. With parliamentary elections looming in the near term and parties focused on bread-and-butter issues like prices, security, and healthcare queues, few leaders appear eager to spend precious capital on a divisive moral-policy fight. At the municipal level, where complaints about nuisance and public order are most acute, targeted bylaws and policing strategies are likely to continue as the main tools.

As for public opinion, the broad center is likely to hold. The CVVM data suggest most Czechs are comfortable with the tacit compromise that has governed the last three decades: crack down on coercion, trafficking, and third-party profiteering, but stop short of fully legitimizing the trade. Whether that equilibrium can withstand Europe’s evolving legal environment—and domestic pressure to improve health, safety, and tax compliance—will define the next chapter of the Czech debate.

Sources

• CVVM (Center for Public Opinion Research), Czech Academy of Sciences: “Public Opinion on Abortion, Euthanasia, and Prostitution – May/June 2025” (press release and PDF, Aug. 22, 2025).

• CVVM survey details: Panel Naše společnost PNS_25-05_2, fieldwork May 30–June 12, 2025; 1,712 respondents aged 15+, CAWI + CAPI.

• European Parliament Research Service (2021): “The differing EU Member States’ regulations on prostitution and their impact on gender equality and women’s rights.”

• Radio Prague International archives (2005, 2010): reporting on national and Prague City Hall proposals to legalize/regulate prostitution.